Covid-19: Delta wave slowed US economic growth in third quarter

   WASHINGTON, Oct 29 (NNN-AGENCIES) – The US economic expansion slowed dramatically in the third quarter to an annual rate of just two percent as consumer spending was choked by resurgent Covid-19 infections, the White House said.   The spread of the Delta variant of the virus over the summer…

Brazil emissions rose in 2020 despite pandemic: study

   BRASILIA, Oct 29 (NNN-AGENCIES) — Brazil’s greenhouse gas emissions rose by 9.5 percent last year, mostly because of deforestation, a report said, making it one of the only major economies not to cut pollution as the pandemic hit.   Even as worldwide emissions fell seven percent in 2020 —…

Covid-19: Uganda to reopen schools in January, after almost two years

 KAMPALA, Oct 29 (NNN-AGENCIES) — Ugandan schools, closed since March last year owing to the pandemic, will reopen in January regardless of currently low vaccination uptake, President Yoweri Museveni said.   “Be informed that the schools will be opened in January and the rest of the economy will be opened…

DR Congo army kills 27 rebels, loses four soldiers

 BUNIA (DR Congo), Oct 29 (NNN-AGENCIES) — The Congolese army said that it had lost four soldiers and killed 27 militiamen in two days of fighting in several villages in the northeast of the country.    The fighting took place on Tuesday and Thursday in two villages in Djugu territory…

Covid-19: WHO wants $23.4 bn for Covid plan

  GENEVA, Oct 29 (NNN-AGENCIES) — The World Health Organization said it needed $23.4 billion over the next 12 months for its plan to conquer Covid-19, urging the G20 to show some leadership and pay up.    WHO chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus bluntly told the Group of 20 global powers, meeting…

DR Congo to open diplomatic mission in Jerusalem: president

Congolese President Felix Tshisekedi meets with Israeli Prime Minister Naftali Bennett in Jerusalem JERUSALEM, Oct 29 (NNN-Xinhua) — The Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) will open a diplomatic and trade representative in Jerusalem. Felix Tshisekedi, president of the DRC and the current African Union (AU) chairperson, held a meeting…

Tunisian president calls for solid cooperation between UN, African Union

TUNIS, Oct 29 (NNN-Xinhua) — Tunisian President Kais Saied called for solid cooperation between the United Nations (UN) and various regional organizations, particularly the African Union (AU), according to a statement released by the presidency. “Developing such cooperation is a strategic priority and an effective tool to deal with key…

Pope to visit Canada after indigenous school scandal

Pope Francis THE VATICAN, Oct 29 (NNN-AGENCIES) — Pope Francis will visit Canada as the Catholic Church seeks to rebuild bridges with the indigenous community following a horrifying scandal of abuse at Church-run residential schools, the Vatican said.“The Canadian Conference of Catholic Bishops has invited the Holy Father to make…

US sanctions two Lebanese businessmen, a lawmaker for corruption

WASHINGTON, Oct 29 (NNN-AGENCIES) — The United States Treasury has imposed sanctions on two top Lebanese contractors and a lawmaker close to the Hezbollah movement over alleged large-scale corruption that undermined the rule of law in Lebanon.Businessmen Jihad al-Arab and Dany Khoury, close to former Lebanese Prime Minister Saad al-Hariri…

Ethiopia air raid on Tigray kills six, including children

Residents sift through rubble from a destroyed building at the scene of an air raid in Mekelle, in the Tigray region of northern Ethiopia ADDIS ABABA, Oct 29 (NNN-AGENCIES) — Ethiopia’s military has carried out an air raid on the capital of the war-torn Tigray region that a hospital official…